Policy News

Contents

The Fundraising Regulator has published new rules and guidance outlining the responsibilities of online fundraising platforms. Guidance has also been produced to help the general public who want to raise funds using these platforms to ensure they do not inadvertently breach the Code.

Healthcare professionals in GP surgeries and the community will soon give advice on dementia risk to patients as part of the NHS Health Check. People over 40 in England will be given advice on dementia as part of their free NHS health check.

The DWP has announced it is developing in-house IT capacity for medical assessments after the Commons Select Committee received thousands of accounts of shoddy, error-ridden reports that have slipped through the net.

A recent report from the National Audit Office says here is no practical alternative to continuing with Universal Credit. It recognises the determination and single-mindedness with which the DWP has driven the programme forward to date, through many problems.

The DWP has issued guidance to private and social sector landlords with information about Universal Credit to help them understand what they can do to help their tenants prepare for their move to the single Universal Credit benefit payment and making direct payments of their housing costs direct to their landlord themselves.

The Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Committee has launched an inquiry on automation and the future of work, looking at its likely impact on UK businesses and the potential it has for productivity, growth and reindustrialisation.

A new lottery funded programme of training for charity board Chairs is being offered by the Association of Chairs. The programme is for Chairs and Vice Chairs of charities and non-profit organisations in England with an annual income of under £1 million.

According to data released under the Freedom of Information Act, which analysed applications for universal credit over one month, a fifth of UC applications were turned down because of "non-compliance with the process". Of those, half failed to book an initial interview.

Over the past 40 years, the UK has seen an almost continual rise in the proportion of women in employment. These changes are largely the result of a huge change in working patterns at particular points in the life cycle, with far more women in employment over the course of their mid-to-late 20s and early 30s.

Charity Finance Group's latest Economic Outlook Briefing analyses key financial trends across the economy, income and expenditure including inflation, government spending, wage growth and tax. It has found that inflation means that charities have to raise £3.7bn a year extra by 2020 in order to maintain their spending power from 2014/15.

Each year there are around 100,000 new trustees, appointed either as trustees of newly registered charities or in existing charities. This new guide from the Charity Commission will be emailed to new trustees to introduce them to the role so that they have a basic understanding of their duties and responsibilities.

The Fundraising Regulator has published new complaints guidance and made a change to the Code of Fundraising Practice, which now requires charities to make their complaints procedures publicly available.

A survey commissioned by the Voluntary Organisations Disability Group (VODG), which received about 90 responses, found that 68 per cent said there would be a threat to the viability of their organisation if they were made to pay six years' back-pay to sleep-in shift workers historically paid below the National Minimum Wage (NMW).

New analysis from Citizens Advice finds some workers may struggle to achieve financial stability on Universal Credit - particularly those affected by cuts made to the benefit since 2015 and those in less traditional forms of work.

The National Audit Office conducted an investigation into concerns raised by members of Parliament and the media in November 2017 about underpayments in Employment and Support Allowance paid to people with limited capability to work due to illness or disability.

Giving to charity is a longstanding and important tradition, and the British public are generous when it comes to supporting charitable causes. Sadly, that generosity can sometimes be undermined by those who seek to intercept charitable funds for their own gain.

Volunteers' Week is a chance to say thank you for the fantastic contribution millions of volunteers make across the UK. It takes place 1st-7th June every year and is an opportunity to celebrate volunteering in all its diversity.

The Sage Foundation is donating licences for its latest people-management software to not-for-profit organisations. The US accounting, payroll and payment systems company is also offering 50 per cent licence contributions on all subsequent licences for Sage Business Cloud People.

Last November the Chancellor, Philip Hammond, delivered the Budget for 2018/19. These changes take effect in April 2018 and will see some significant tax changes come into effect, as well as the usual uprating of tax thresholds.

The Gambling Commission has published its recommendations to the Government on how to reduce the risks that vulnerable consumers face from gambling. It recommends that Fixed Odds Betting Terminals slots stakes should be limited to £2. However, it says the stake limit for FOBT non-slot games should be set at or below £30.

The Department for Work and Pensions has launched a new Understanding Universal Credit website to help people find out what Universal Credit means for them. It was created in response to requests from claimants and partner organisations for more information about Universal Credit.

Jobcentre Plus wants to work with local public and voluntary organisations that will help unemployed people move off benefits and into employment. Some opportunities focus on specific measures or specific groups.

From April 2018, people will be able to claim up to £57,200 annually to help pay for additional support that they may need in the workplace - approximately £15,000 more than the current cap of £42,100.

The Department for Work and Pensions has published a white paper on defined benefit (DB) pension schemes setting out the government's intentions to give The Pensions Regulator (TPR) stronger powers to take action against company directors who commit reckless action in relation to a pension scheme, strengthening scheme funding standards and considering how scheme consolidation can be strengthened.

To better understand the role of cash and digital payments in the new economy, the government has launched a call for evidence. We want to make sure that our economy is fit for the future and keeps pace with changes in the ways that people pay for goods and services.

CPAG has been working with students at the London College of Communication, part of the University of the Arts London, on a project to create animations which convey the experience of child poverty. Using testimony from children living in poverty, the students interpreted various aspects of poverty and produced ten short animated films.

The problem of low pay is increasingly dominating the domestic policy agenda. To mark the end of a programme of research funded by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, The Institute for Fiscal Studies set out the latest evidence on poverty in the UK and in particular the challenges posed by the rise of in-work poverty.

Charities are missing out because people are not enabling them to claim Gift Aid on donations, according to HMRC, and the Governments has launched a campaign encouraging the public to tick the Gift Aid box.

The Centre for Responsible Credit and Jubilee Debt Campaign have called on the Government, the Bank of England and the Financial Conduct Authority to instigate a Household Debt Jubilee in order to release low income households from billions of 'unjust' consumer credit debt.

The Impact Management Programme website is full of practical information for charities and social enterprises that are new to impact management. The programme aims to build the capacity of charities and social enterprises to manage their impact.

Government has agreed changes to pension regulations which are due to come into force on 6th April. The regulations will create deferred debt arrangements that will allow charities to plan how to pay off their debts when leaving a multi-employer pension scheme and stop accruing further liabilities.

The fundraising regulator has worked with the Institute of Fundraising to produce six briefings on GDPR. These "bite size" guides are designed to be as accessible and as relevant as possible for fundraisers.

This new report from the NCSC outlines the cyber threat that charities of all sizes now face. We encourage all charities, especially smaller ones, to make use of the NCSC’s guidance on reducing the impact of cyber attacks.

An international holiday house exchange where disabled people swap houses with other disabled people who have the same accessibility needs has expanded the site to include families with disabled children, so that families with the same access needs can also take advantage of this great idea.

The annual up-rating of benefits will take place for state pensions and most other benefits in the first full week of the tax year. In 2018, this will be the week beginning 9th April. A corresponding provision will be made in Northern Ireland.

53 million smart meters are set to be installed in homes and small businesses by 2020, as part of the government-led smart meter roll-out. To support the roll-out, Citizens Advice are monitoring the consumer experience of smart metering.

With safeguarding in the news following unwelcome revelations about the behaviour of staff at Oxfam, ACO wishes to remind members of the importance of this topic. Here is a quick round-up of recent guidance from the Charity commission.

HM Revenue & Customs has published updated guidance on the VAT treatment of grants and contracts to clarify which services are eligible for VAT. As part of the guidance, HMRC published a list of things that would indicate a service is eligible for VAT.

From 1st August 2018, changes to the automatic disqualification rules mean that there will be more restrictions on who can run a charity. For most charities, taking some simple steps to update recruitment and appointment systems is all that will be needed to prepare for the rule changes.

From January 2018 if you need a basic check for a job in England and Wales, you should apply to Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). If you need a basic check for a job in Scotland, then you should apply to Disclosure Scotland. If you are an organisation applying for a basic check on behalf of an employee or someone else, you can use a ‘Responsible Organisation’ a third party registered with DBS.

A new helpline from Action Fraud was launched in December 2017. If you are a business, charity or other organisation which is currently suffering a live cyber-attack (in progress), please call 0300 123 2040 immediately. Specialist advisors are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Sir Nicholas Montagu, a former chairman of Inland Revenue, is chairing a new NCVO led Charity Tax Commission which will develop recommendations to Government. The Terms of Reference have now been published.

This publication is issued by the UK charity regulators and provides examples of where auditors and independent examiners can usefully use their discretion to report relevant matters of interest to the regulators.

A summary of the important changes in the budget affecting the benevolent charity sector, including Universal Credit, National Living Wage, income Tax, Disabled Facilities Grants and charity regulation.

Britain is on course for the longest period of falling living standards since records began in the 1950s, with the current crunch forecast to last longer than the post-crisis income squeeze. RF's overnight post-Budget report highlights the unprecedented scale of the economic downgrade handed down to the Chancellor by the OBR, and how this impacts on the public and families' finances.

The First Secretary of State and Minister for the Cabinet Office, Damian Green, has announced that the government will publish a green paper on care and support for older people by summer 2018. The paper will set out plans for how government proposes to improve care and support for older people and tackle the challenge of an ageing population.

The Annual Fraud Indicator 2017 published by the UK Fraud Costs Measurement Committee based on research by the accountancy firm Crowe Clark Whitehill, the credit rating agency Experian and the University of Portsmouth's Centre for Counter Fraud Studies, says that a large increase in procurement fraud to almost £1.2bn was a major reason for this rise.

The NRA 2017 assesses the risk of money laundering and terrorist financing in the Not For Profit (NPO) sector in its entirety to be low, whilst recognising that certain parts of the sector - particularly charities working internationally in certain countries - face significantly higher risks.

The voluntary sector has evolved significantly since the government's last tax review twenty years ago. A new commission has now been appointed to appraise charitable reliefs and make recommendations to produce public benefit in the most effective way.

Tracey Crouch, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, and Minister for Civil Society, has published a Written Ministerial Statement confirming the Government's intention to develop a Civil Society Strategy.

According to the IPPR think-tank, the UK needs a pay rise. Real median (average) household incomes are today only five per cent higher than they were in 2007 and the country is in the worst period of pay growth in 150 years, exposing serious weaknesses in the UK's economic model.

Following engagement with the FCA, BrightHouse has committed to pay over £14.8 million (in the form of cash payments and balance adjustments) to 249,000 customers in respect of 384,000 agreements for lending which may not have been affordable and payments which should have been refunded.

A new report from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation concludes that the Conservatives appealed to many lower income voters' support for Brexit and immigration control. Labour instead appealed to these voters' economic concerns over living standards, redistribution, inequality and austerity.

A new £15 million programme will see up to 1 million people trained in basic mental health “first aid” skills. The programme will improve personal resilience and help people recognise and respond effectively to signs of mental illness in others.

The Internet Safety Strategy looks at how to ensure Britain is the safest place in the world to be online. The Strategy considers the responsibilities of companies to their users, the use of technical solutions to prevent online harms and government's role in supporting users.

The CARE Quality Commission warns that the health and social care system is at full stretch and struggling to meet the more complex needs of today's population, meaning that maintaining quality in the future is uncertain.

The Fundraising Regulator has launched a Code Consultation on Data Protection. The consultation will enable charities, fundraisers and members of the public to provide feedback on proposed changes to the code regarding data protection.

As we count down to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) taking effect next May, the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has clarified how the fees that data controllers have to pay to the ICO are changing.

Dunraven Finance Ltd, trading under the name Buy as You View (BAYV), has been placed in administration. BAYV is a rent-to-own provider selling household goods, such as electronics and furniture on hire purchase to customers.

Facebook has announced that it will be launching charity fundraising tools in 16 European countries, including the UK, that will allow people to donate directly on social media pages through donate buttons inserted into page headers or posts, such as videos, photos or text.

FPS has been made aware of an email scam being sent to charities, asking to receive payment from the Fundraising Preference Service or implying that an invoice is due. They would like to clarify that they do not send out invoices for the Fundraising Preference Service, as the cost of this service is covered by the fundraising levy.

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) builds on existing requirements for security measures to have a written contract in place with the aim of setting high standards and protecting the interests of data subjects.

The Women and Equalities Committee has re-opened its inquiry into older people and employment, looking at current Government policies to help people extend their working lives, and considering further steps which could be taken to tackle issues including age discrimination.

The scope of the inquiry into Universal Credit covers DWP’s preparedness for the scheduled acceleration of the rollout of full service Universal Credit from October 2017, including waits for payments, advance payments, impact on and communication with local authorities and landlords, Alternative Payment Arrangements, the effects of planned Jobcentre closures and the proposed flexible arrangements in Scotland.

The years since the financial crisis have been far from an easy ride for family living standards. After a brief two-year ‘mini-boom’ between 2013 and 2015, the signs are pointing towards a living standards recovery that is beginning to falter.

According to research published by the Institute of Fundraising and YouGov women said that they were more likely to donate to charity, take new positive social actions as a result of donating, support local causes and donate if they found a cause they believe in.

More children are being hit by the Government’s benefit cap policy despite a High Court ruling against it, the latest official figures show. Department for Work and Pensions figures show that 3,000 more single-parent families with children under two have been hit by the policy while the Government appeals the decision.

Parents working full time on the national living wage are significantly short of the income needed to give children an acceptable minimum living standard – as defined by the public – and the shortfall will grow as inflation combines with the current freeze on benefits to put family budgets under new strain, according to the Child Poverty Action Group.

The House of Lords Select Committee on Citizenship and Civic Engagement invites contributions to its new inquiry which will investigate the legal rights and responsibilities for citizens of the UK, the barriers to citizenship and what can be done to support and encourage civic engagement.

The World Health Organisation recognises World Mental Health Day on 10th October every year. The day provides an opportunity “for all stakeholders working on mental health issues to talk about their work, and what more needs to be done to make mental health care a reality for people worldwide”.

The Government has committed to updating and strengthening data protection laws through a new Data Protection Bill. The Bill will bring the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) into UK law.

Working in partnership with the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy and Nesta are launching the Inventor Prize, to inspire and harness the potential of the UK’s home-grown inventors and stimulate user-led innovation.

The Department of Work and Pensions present findings from research into three labour market trials that aimed to assist Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) claimants’ progress towards the labour market.

Citizens Advice have published the findings of a survey of Universal Credit applicants, revealing significant problems and making recommendations to change how the service is rolled out in order to prevent further hardship to claimants.

The Law Commission has launched a consultation on proposed changes to legacy law, which it says is outdated and often does not allow courts to implement people’s wishes, even if they are clear, because they have not followed legal procedure entirely correctly.

To help improve the support for young adult carers and create more carer-friendly communities in education and employment, the Learning and Work Institute has launched a new website: ‘Learn, Work, Care’ bringing together resources for young adult carers and the staff who support them.

The Life Chances Fund aims to help those people in society who face the most significant barriers to leading happy and productive lives. The £80m has been made with ‘payments by results’ contracts which involve socially minded investors.

The Centre for Responsible Credit distills the latest data from the UK Economic Accounts and from the the NMG survey to provide information about the level and distribution of the household consumer credit debt burden.

New figures from the Institute of Fundraising’s Site Management Agreements and mystery shopper programme show that the number of breaches of the street fundraising rules have fallen again this last year.

Work Choice helps people with disabilities whose needs cannot be met through other work programmes, Access to Work or workplace adjustments. This might be because they need more specialised support to find employment or keep a job once they have started work.

The proportion of older people with care needs is set to rise by 25% within a decade in England and Wales. The finding comes from a study funded by the British Heart Foundation and published in The Lancet Public Health journal.

The Cascading Leadership pilot was launched in March 2016, in partnership with GSK and Comic Relief, to enable high-performing leaders of voluntary and community organisations to share their learning with the wider sector.

Small Charity Week celebrates and raises awareness of the essential work of the UK’s small charity sector that make an invaluable contribution to the lives of millions of individuals, communities and causes across the UK and the rest of the world.